Cyprian Brady (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

Like many of the previous speakers in this debate on the Labour Services (Amendment) Bill 2009, I have weekly, and sometimes daily, interaction with the front line staff in FÁS and, as the previous speaker mentioned, 99.9% of the people working in FÁS are committed, experienced and have great expertise in terms of the job they do. As with any barrel of apples, if one or two are off colour, the rot tends to spread quickly. However, the body of people I deal with in FÁS on a regular basis are nothing but professional and provide an excellent service not just to their own communities, but throughout the country. As the chairman of the Joint Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Willie Penrose, mentioned, this is not just an urban issue. In huge swathes of rural Ireland FÁS plays a crucial role in daily life, and that must be recognised. I want to record my admiration for the staff in FÁS who do a superb job on a day to day basis.

In terms of what FÁS grew from, I recall the time of AnCO and the national manpower service, which were crucial agencies to this economy and this country when they were first established. The reason for instituting those agencies was to ensure that our young people were given an opportunity. In the days of AnCO and the national manpower service many people left school at the age of 13 and 14 with no qualifications and very little in terms of educational achievement. Those agencies were put in place to tackle a deficit that existed at the time.

Over time, the role of our national training agency has changed dramatically, in some cases for the better, but not in all cases. As was pointed out, FÁS provided a myriad of services initially as a training agency, but it has expanded into areas which would be better serviced by other Departments and agencies.

On the core function of FÁS and the reason for this legislation, in fairness to the Committee of Public Accounts, it has done an excellent job regarding this particular controversy, particularly in dealing with issues in the public interest, but also in the interest of FÁS. In fairness to the Minister, the majority of the recommendations from the conclusions and recommendations of the PAC report and the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General are included in this legislation.

Starting with the board of FÁS, the changes that will be made include reducing the size of the board from 17 to 11. A rolling system of appointments will be introduced which is welcome because as with any other agency or board, people become stale, so to speak, having served for many years on a board. It is welcome that they will be changed on a regular basis. That will bring new blood and new ideas to a board.

The removal of the automatic right to nominate individuals for appointment is welcome. We have seen that, because of the way FÁS was structured initially, the board became unwieldy. In my opinion, that filtered down to the rest of the organisation in that in some areas FÁS was dealing with there was a distinct lack of direction from board level. That is something this legislation will remedy.

Other provisions include making the director general of FÁS accountable to the Oireachtas; requiring the disclosure of conflicts of interest on the part of directors and staff of FÁS; and banning directors and staff of FÁS from any involvement in matters where they have a conflict of interest. That is standard procedure in most boards in that if somebody sitting at the table has a conflict of interest, he or she is obliged to declare that and remove themselves from whatever decisions are being made. That is not just in the interest of the individual, but also in the interest of the board.

The final provision is the protection for the whistle-blower. We must be careful with any legislation that introduces a measure such as this because with rights come responsibilities, and people should be responsible. It stitches in protection not just for the person who may have some information which he or she feels must be passed on either to the board, superiors or the Department but also for the agency and board. That is a crucial element because as with other major organisations employing thousands of people, there will be some who will make unscrupulous charges against an individual or section. The way this legislation is framed will ensure that an individual with information is protected while at the same time there is protection for the board, its members and the rest of the organisation.

Since this controversy kicked off early last year, the issue of accountability of staff and board members has become significant. The way this legislation is framed, such accountability is clear and understood. Everybody who will be associated with the board of FÁS will be obliged to ensure that he or she is accountable and any decisions made, whether joint or individual, are subject to scrutiny. People must be held accountable for the decisions they make, and this was not happening at the very highest levels at FÁS. Many of the individual incidents of mismanagement which have come into the public domain with regard to senior management in FÁS can and will be avoided in future.

The disclosure of people's interests is a standard procedure with all boards in State and semi-State agencies. There is a requirement on people to disclose a particular interest they have; as far as I am aware, it is a legal obligation. The Committee of Public Accounts has done significant work in unravelling the series of events which has led us to where we are today with the introduction of this piece of legislation. The Minister and the Department have acted quickly and listened to the Comptroller and Auditor General and the committee. The recommendations have been taken on board and this will lead to a meaner, leaner and more efficient and effective FÁS.

Economic, financial and employment factors mean we require, now more than ever, a State agency for training, further education, business support and to help people who have made an effort. These people may have remained in education up to the leaving certificate and on to higher level education or they may have returned to education to improve the skills they may or may not have been able to tap into when they were younger. In this economic climate, such people must be supported, and that is what FÁS is there to do.

The Government and these Houses must ensure any decisions, whether at board, director or at front-line level, are in the interest of getting people back into employment and improving people's training and education. The jobs, education and training which people receive should be sustainable and stay with people into the future.

As public representatives, we are dealing with people on continuous education schemes and jobs initiatives. We deal with partnerships, jobs clubs and organisations for the unemployed. FÁS plays a significant role in this respect so the more we strengthen and build it, and the more we ensure that it is efficient and effective, the more dividends we will see in the long run.

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